


Beautiful Broken Rules

by Chessala



Category: Yuri!!! on Ice (Anime)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Banter, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Professor Victor, Student Yuuri, Victor does not teach Russian, Viktor with a K
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-25
Updated: 2018-11-25
Packaged: 2019-08-11 11:15:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,639
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16474499
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chessala/pseuds/Chessala
Summary: Yuuri hadn't expected to meet his old friend and Russian tutor Viktor Nikiforov on his very first class. He had expected Viktor to teach a class about witchcraft and the occult even less. Somehow, their meeting does feel like magic to Yuuri though.





	Beautiful Broken Rules

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thehobbem](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thehobbem/gifts).



> This was a lot of fun to write though I kept procrastinating on it, waaah! 
> 
> Prompt: College au, either as professors or students (Victor/Yuuri, any rating)
> 
> **Not beta-ed!**
> 
> Enjoy!

Most of Yuuri’s course schedule looked exactly like what you would expect from a first-year student of  _ Sport Science _ aiming for a degree in  _ Applied Sports and Exercise Physiology _ . There were the obvious practical modules as well as the theoretical ones with a focus on physiology and physiotherapy. Nothing that would be out of the ordinary or that could be considered crazy. Except for one.

It started as joke, with Phichit telling Yuuri that they should sign up for something crazy to get their out-of-subject credit. Yuuri had laughed then and told Phichit that he should sign them up for anything since there wasn’t much he was interested in outside of the courses he had to take anyway. And that was how Yuuri found his Monday morning starting with a lecture about  _ Things that go Bump in the Night: Magic, Witchcraft and the Occult _ .

“Couldn’t you at least have picked an afternoon slot, Phichit?” Yuuri complained while stifling a yawn. Yuuri wasn’t a morning person in the slightest and having to get up early for a lecture he wasn’t even interested in wasn’t his idea of a good start of the week. He hadn’t even placed any of the courses he actually wanted to attend before 11am.

“This was the only one that still had two slots.” Phichit said way too cheerful in Yuuri’s opinion. He couldn’t understand how anyone could be in a good mood at not even 9am.

Yuuri looked at the ever-growing amount of people squashing into the room and chatting excitedly. He wouldn’t have been surprised to find the room deserted given the ungodly hour but quite the opposite was the case. Given the size of the room, Yuuri was fairly sure that this kind of lecture was usually not well visited. And yet, almost every seat was taken with just a few minutes left before the lecture was supposed to start.

“How many other slots were there?” Yuuri asked, speaking more to himself than to Phichit, who was seated right next to Yuuri.

“Seven or eight I think.” Phichit said, causing Yuuri to turn his head and look at his friend in disbelief.

“And they were  _ all full?” _ Yuuri could hear his own voice make a double-take at the news, the last words more pitched than they should have been. Phichit only grinned and leaned back in his chair.

“They say the professor is really hot, only a few years older than us.”

Of course, Yuuri knew there would be a very simple reason why a lecture named  _ Things that go Bump in the Night _ filled more than one time slot a week. Not that Yuuri was particularly against looking at a really hot professor as Phichit had called him, he just wished he could do it later in the day.

“I so don’t care.” Yuuri lied, placing his head face down on his table. He might have to attend this utterly ridiculous lecture, but no one ever said he had to be awake while doing so.

“He’s coming!” a girl hissed into the room before rushing to he own seat, trying her best to not erupt into giggles. Yuuri made a point out of keeping his head on the table and remained that way even when the room went dead silent and a new set of steps announced the arrival of their professor.

Phichit inhaled sharply and reached over to shake Yuuri’s shoulder, babbling something uncoercive that Yuuri was sure referred to the looks of the professor standing only two rows of tables away from them. Yuuri was glad he had insisted on not sit in the front row.

“Good morning! I didn’t think you would be this excited on a Monday morning!”

Yuuri shot up so fast he had to dig his nails into the wood of his table to avoid toppling over backwards. He wasn’t sure how long it had been, four years maybe, but Yuuri would recognize the soft Russian accent and the cheerful voice of Viktor Nikiforov anywhere.

The first time they met was when Yuuri was only 12 and Viktor had just moved in next doors. Yuuri still remembered looking at the Nikiforov family through a foggy window, wondering about the language he could hear faintly echoing from outside. It wasn’t like he had spied on them but when Viktor suddenly turned around and his bright blue eyes locked with Yuuri’s, Yuuri had panicked and hid below his window until he was sure no one was looking at him anymore.

Of course, Viktor had laughed at him the next day when Yuuri’s mother made Yuuri bring over cookies to the new neighbours despite Yuuri’s weak attempts at a protest. Neither of them was great at English then but they somehow managed to communicate. And somehow, they had ended with Viktor teaching Yuuri Russian three times a week.

Viktor hadn’t lost any of his charisma from back then. While his beautiful silver hair was short now, it still managed to frame his face perfectly. And even from two rows away, Yuuri could see that Viktor’s eyes still carried the same shine that had pulled Yuuri to him all these years ago as well.

He knew Viktor had left to study, to become a teacher one day. They had lost contact after that though, each of them busy with their own lives and goals. It wasn’t like they had any special connection back then, all they had been was neighbours, friends maybe. They hadn’t even gone to the same school as Viktor was four years older than Yuuri.

Admittedly, Yuuri had been sure that Viktor would aim to teach Russian or Slavic Studies in general. It just felt like an obvious choice considering that he had been such a great tutor to Yuuri. He would have never expected a lecture like, well… _ this one _ .

Yuuri wasn’t sure how long exactly he had stayed in the same position, clinging desperately to his table while staring at Viktor, when he noticed Viktor’s eyes locking with his, much like they had through the window the very first day. And for a moment, Yuuri had the same urge to hide as he did back then.

“Yuuri,  _ Yuuri! _ The hot professor is staring at you!” Phichit hissed from the side, voice vibrating with excitement.

Yuuri watched as a small smile of recognition appeared on Viktor’s face, small enough so only Yuuri would notice it. It felt private, forbidden even, making a small shiver run down Yuuri’s spine that he could only hide by holding on to his table even tighter.

_ “I think he likes you! Did you see that smile?” _ Phichit wrote on a note at some point during the lecture after Yuuri finally managed to let go of his table.

“ _ You’re crazy. _ ” Was all Yuuri answered with shaking hands, trying his best to make his handwriting look steady.

When the bell finally rang, Yuuri had a hard time remembering when exactly two hours went by. He desperately hoped that nothing of what had been covered in the lesson would be included in any kind of test since he couldn’t remember a single word. All Yuuri remembered was watching Viktor’s every move, getting lost in the voice that had gotten him interested in Russian so many years ago. Yuuri had always liked Viktor’s voice but listening to it now felt different from before. Viktor’s voice sounded just like Yuuri remembered it and yet it had never frozen Yuuri in place before.

A hand suddenly appearing in Yuuri’s face made him almost fall backwards again. Looking up, Yuuri saw Phichit’s wide-grinning face appear in front of him, eyes shining with all the questions Yuuri knew he’d have to answer as soon as they were back in their dorm room.

Around them, the room started to empty out, leaving only a few students grouped around Viktor, bombarding him with all the question Yuuri was sure would be answered in later classes. Since Yuuri didn’t actually remember a single word of the lesson though, he could hardly go up to Viktor.

“How old do you think he is?” Phichit whispered into Yuuri’s ear while side-eying the waning crowd of people around Viktor without any intention of moving.

“24 maybe?” Yuuri said, trying his best to make it sound like a guess. Yuuri knew exactly how old Viktor was and on what day he celebrated his birthday. Truth be told, a date like December 25 th was rather easy to remember but Yuuri was sure he would remember it no matter the date.

“ _ Yuuri, the hot professor is walking towards you _ !” Phichit pressed out way too late for Yuuri to process what he had said in time to prepare himself.

“Yuuri! I never thought I’d see you here!” Suddenly hearing Viktor’s voice directed at him made Yuuri’s throat tighten. It was one thing to hear Viktor give a lesson (even if Yuuri hadn’t listened). But hearing him say Yuuri’s name, the  _ r _ ’s tumbling from his tongue like he hadn’t said the letter in too long, was a completely different one.

Looking at Viktor standing next to his table, arms wide open as if he was about to pull Yuuri into a bear hug, made it almost impossible to breathe. Yuuri felt himself answer Viktor’s smile with one of his own while his head felt as if it suddenly had been wrapped in cotton. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Yuuri knew he would never hear the end of this from Phichit, but he couldn’t get himself to care about it.

“You never gave me your new address, Viktor.” Yuuri answered, surprised by the pout in his own voice. It was true that part of the reason they hadn’t kept in touch was that Viktor hadn’t bothered to let Yuuri know how he could reach Viktor after he moved away.

“I’m sorry, time just flew by and I must have forgotten. I can’t believe you’re at University now, and in my class!”

Of course Viktor would have forgotten, that’s just how he had always been. Yuuri wouldn’t exactly describe him as scatter-brained but he definitely had the tendency to get so occupied with his life that he simply forgot anything else even existed. Yuuri wanted to be petty about it and give Viktor a hard time but seeing the dazzling smile on Viktor’s face, Yuuri knew he wouldn’t be able to.

“You two know each other?!” Phichit burst out, unable to hold back the question that had undoubtedly been burning his tongue. Yuuri bit his lip to not start laughing at the expression his friend made. Pointing towards Viktor, Yuuri cleared his throat before talking.

“Phichit, this is my former neighbour and Russian tutor, Viktor Nikiforov.” Turning around, Yuuri continued his introduction with the same theatrics voice. “Viktor, this is my roommate and friend, Phichit Chulanont.”

“Roommate and  _ best friend _ .” Phichit corrected, throwing his arm around Yuuri’s shoulder. “I didn’t know Yuuri had a  _ Russian _ tutor, did you teach him  _ French _ too?”

“No, Phichit!” Yuuri said with a groan, wishing a hole would open up and swallow him. Leave it to Phichit to make an impression within the first two sentences after he joined a conversation. Viktor, of course, found all this way too amusing as was easy to hear by the loud laugh coming from him. Suddenly it was getting hard for Yuuri to breathe again.

“I have some stuff to take care of but I’m free in the afternoon.” Viktor said while still chuckling about Phichit’s comment. “Would you want to meet and catch up?”

“I’ll kill you if you say no.” Phichit whispered into Yuuri’s ear while smiling. Not like Yuuri would have needed the encouragement though.

\-------------------------

Yuuri thought reconnecting with Viktor would be difficult. While Yuuri was only just starting University, Viktor had already finished his degree and started his career. Four years apart also meant that they had very different interests.

While Yuuri was interested in Spots and Video Games, Viktor’s interest had somehow shifted to the occult. And yet, Yuuri found it surprisingly easy to talk to him, feeling like they picked up exactly where they had left off a few years ago.

“I can’t believe you are suddenly into ghosts and witches when you couldn’t even watch Harry Potter with your eyes open.” Yuuri said while taking a sip of his tea. He never really had a liking for coffee and while Phichit swore on it, Yuuri still much rather preferred tea to the black broth.

“You know I never liked spiders, I can fully empathize with Ronald Weasley.” Viktor said while pulling a face that made Yuuri almost choke on his tea. Somehow Viktor still managed to keep his voice entirely serious through the sentence though, a trait Yuuri had always admired as his own voice betrayed him way too many times.

“All I’m saying is that it wasn’t the spiders that made you hide behind the couch.” Yuuri teased, feeling none of the pressure and awkwardness he was afraid would be between them. The pout Viktor gave him as a reply almost earned him a tea-drenched dress shirt.

“I’m still not good with horror movies,” Viktor finally admitted, “but the mythology and beliefs behind them is simply fascinating, Yuuri! You won’t believe all the misconceptions people have about what they call  _ Satanism _ . And if you think  _ Witchcraft _ is really about women riding brooms, you’re in for a disappointment!”

While Yuuri hadn’t caught much of Viktor’s lecture, he made a mental note to actually start paying attention to it. Even if it was just to listen to the same excitement in Viktor’s voice that he was hearing now.

Hearing Viktor like this reminded Yuuri of the time Viktor told him that he was planning to be a teacher. They had never discussed his subjects but even then, Viktor’s eyes had lit up and it was clear that he really wanted this, wanted to teach others. It was something Yuuri felt he would never be capable of but being with Viktor always made him feel that way.

Where Yuuri was withdrawn and quiet, Viktor shone bright like the sun, pulling everyone around him into his orbit. Yuuri was no exception to that. While being with Viktor made Yuuri painfully aware of his shortcomings, Viktor never made Yuuri feel unwelcome or inadequate, quite the contrary.

Whenever Yuuri spoke to Viktor, he knew he had his full attention. It had always felt as if everything around them would stop for Viktor and he made sure he heard every single word Yuuri said. Yuuri had never really thought about it but being with Viktor now made him aware just how focused Viktor was on him. It didn’t matter if what they were talking about was just banter.

\-------------------------

“Have you set a date already?” Phichit asked with a grin when Yuuri closed the door to their room behind him. Of course, Phichit would have waited for him even though Yuuri was back way later than he said he would be. Yuuri briefly felt like throwing a pillow at his friend but settled with rolling his eyes and an exasperated sigh.

“Even if there was anything to set a date for, which there isn’t,” Yuuri started, ignoring Phichit’s huffing at the comment, “he is our professor. And we’re just friends anyway.”

“Well, I’m your  _ best friend _ and you never undressed me with your eyes before.” Phichit with fake hurt in his voice.

Yuuri let himself fall on the couch, not caring that he was falling on Phichit’s legs. He deserved the pain for making fun of his meeting with Viktor. Nothing had really changed between them, it was just that Yuuri hadn’t seen him in so long that he had been…. shocked.

He’d be lying if he didn’t agree that Viktor was good-looking but that was something he had always known. It wasn’t just his hairs and eyes, though they were definitely part of it. It was hard for Yuuri to actually put a finger on it, there was just  _ something _ about him.

“I still think he likes you,” Phichit chirped while pulling his legs out from beneath Yuuri.

“We’re friends Phichit, of course he likes me. I like all my friends though I might have to reconsider that for a certain roommate.”

“No way, you love me too much to ever abandon me.” Phichit declared, looking at Yuuri with a smug face. “But what I mean is that he  _ like  _ likes you. Didn’t you see the way he looked at you or are you really that oblivious?”

“We haven’t seen each other in years….” Yuuri defended weakly. Truth be told, the way Viktor made him feel now was vastly different from how Yuuri used to feel in his presence. He could justify his heart racing in the classroom with not expecting Viktor to be there, anyone would be surprised to suddenly find out his professor is an old friend. That didn’t explain the tightness in his chest and the butterflies during their meeting afterwards though.

“Is that why your face is still red?” Phichit nudged further. Yuuri waved his hand in a dismissive gesture, closing his eyes while leaning back against the couch.

\-------------------------

Yuuri meant what he had said to Phichit, had meant every single word as he was sure that there was, in fact, nothing between him and Viktor that was worth talking about. There couldn’t be anyway.

And yet, Yuuri found that more and more of his free time was spent with Viktor in it. He didn’t even notice it at first with the meetings, lunches, movie nights and shopping trips just quietly slipping into his routine between classes and other responsibilities. It just felt so natural, like slipping back into an old pullover that made you feel comfortable in a way no new one could.

Of course Phichit never stopped teasing Yuuri about his ‘boyfriend’. It had become some kind of game between them; Phichit trying to find new innuendos every time he heard the name Viktor and Yuuri trying his best to not turn into a tomato. But while he denied all of Phichit’s, sometimes outrageous, implications, Yuuri couldn’t help feeling like there was something else between him and Viktor, something that he knew shouldn’t be there but that kept digging deeper and deeper into Yuuri’s chest nonetheless.

“Hey Katsuki! What is it with you and Nikiforov?”

Yuuri turned around in the door to the classroom, already knowing he would see the ever-annoyed face of Yuri Plisetsky. Yuuri didn’t speak to Yuri Plisetsky a lot when he could avoid it, which was mostly because any kind of conversation with Yuri felt like slamming your face against a wall on purpose. Though Yuuri had to admit that he had managed to have some interesting discussions with Yuri about Viktor’s lectures, even if they mostly ended with Yuri calling Viktor a string of unmentionables. Today’s meeting didn’t feel like it would end in one of those discussions though.

“What do you mean?” Yuuri asked genuinely while putting his bag on his table and stealing a glance at Phichit’s still empty seat. Seemed like he had to see that one through alone. Great.

“Don’t play dumb, is he harassing you or something?” Yuri snapped, letting himself fall into a chair that definitely wasn’t his.

“Harrass-no, no! Why would you think that?”

Yuuri couldn’t even fathom how exactly Yuri got the idea that Viktor was harassing him. Sure, Viktor had jumped at Yuuri a few times from behind, just the thought of it still made Yuuri’s heart race, but that could hardly give anyone the impression of harassment, right?

“He is gluing to you like an old chewing gum, aren’t you fucking tired of him?”

Yuuri was sure he imagined the small raise in Yuri’s voice, the distant sound of hope that swung in his words. It wasn’t like they were close enough for any of those feelings to be involved in this.

“I’m really not so you don’t have to worry Yuri.” Yuuri said with a smile and while finally taking his seat. “Actually, we were going to go for a drink with a few others later, would you want to come too?”

“Are you fucking crazy? Why would I….” Yuri stopped mid-sentence, obviously contemplation the proposition after he had almost decline it. He looked at Yuuri, possibly trying to assess if the offer was genuine and then nodded. “Whatever, where do we meet?”

Yuuri wasn’t sure why he invited Yuri. Maybe he was feeling sorry for him since Yuri didn’t seem to have a lot of people he got along with. Yuri could be nice, at least to Yuuri, so going out and meeting new people might be a good way for him to relax. And the alcohol would hopefully do the rest of the work.

\-------------------------

The evening started easy enough after they decided which bar to go to. There were quite a few near the campus, all of them rather popular with the students and professors alike.

Originally, Phichit had planned to bring a few people he had met in other courses, though he ended up coming alone.

“Seems they had better things to do.” Phichit said with a shrug next to Yuuri, already browsing the bar’s menu. Yuuri knew his friend was disappointed but Phichit wasn’t one to let an evening of drinking get ruined by that.

Viktor let himself fall on the table’s bench on Yuuri’s right, possibly a bit closer than was absolutely necessary considering that the bench circled the whole table and they were only five people. Yuuri hoped that Viktor couldn’t hear the beats his heart started skipping.

Next to Viktor, one of the other professor’s joined them. Yuuri had only seen Christophe Giacometti from afar but it seemed like he and Viktor were rather close, something that made Yuuri more uncomfortable than he liked to admit.

Grudgingly, Yuri placed himself between Phichit and Chris, not even trying to hide his dismay about the seating arrangements.

“At least I don’t have to sit next to a balding idiot.” Yuri declared loudly, making Viktor fake hurt from the comment. Yuuri wasn’t sure what exactly their connection was but he was sure that they had some kind of history considering Yuri’s obvious dislike for Viktor.

“So, have you decided to go out with that cute colleague that confessed to you the other day?” Chris asked nonchalantly into the round, making everyone look at Viktor. Yuuri barely managed to not choke on his beer.

Yuuri didn’t know someone had confessed to Viktor. It wasn’t that he was surprised, though. He knew Viktor was popular on the whole campus, some of the students had even formed a kind of club that didn’t seem to have much purpose except talking about Viktor. Phichit had told Yuuri about and ensured him that he knows a way for Yuuri to join if he wanted to. Yuuri had politely declined.

“I told you I wasn’t interested, not in him anyway.” Viktor said with a somewhat melancholic smile, making his beer twirl in his glass. The message that Viktor obviously was interested in  _ someone _ was very clear and Yuuri could feel his chest getting heavier at the thought.

“So, what about you actually are interested in?” Chris pushed with a smile, “you’ve gotten a confession every other week and the person wasn’t among them?”

Yuuri pulled in his lower lip, chewing on it absentmindedly. He knew Viktor was popular but he hadn’t expected that so many people would actually approach him. They had spent so much time together over the last months, when did this happen?

“No, no he hasn’t.” Viktor answered in a voice much lower and much more mellow than Yuuri was used to.

It was a relief, even though Yuuri hated to admit that. He had no right to feel that way knowing that there was no way that he and Viktor could ever be together. And yet, Yuuri wished that he was the person Viktor was waiting for, hoped that he occupied a small part of Viktor’s heart enough for him to not consider anyone else.

It wasn’t fair to hope he was keeping Viktor hostage like that. Yuuri had told himself time and time again that he couldn’t be with Viktor given their student-professor status though technically that was only true until Yuuri passed his class. There was also the fact that Yuuri was sure that going out with old friends never ended well, it hadn’t for anyone he knew at least.

“Have you told him yet?” Phichit asked, leaning over the table to meet Viktor’s eyes. Yuuri wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer to that question.

“No but…I think I’m been pretty obvious when we are together.”  Viktor said with a sigh. Yuuri wasn’t sure if he really saw Viktor give him a glance from the corner of his eyes or if the light was just playing tricks on him.

“You should fucking give up then old man, he’s just playing with you.” Yuri snapped, putting his beer down with more force than necessary so that parts of the foam spread across the table. Yuuri looked at the stain that landed in front of him and felt himself crumble, give in, give up on all the stupid rules he had used as an excuse when his heart already knew what he wanted to do ever since he had met Viktor again.

“So that means everything is still open, doesn’t it?” Chris said with a grin that made Yuuri sit up straight. He didn’t dare to look to the side to see Viktor’s expression.

“Well…” Viktor started, the word impossibly heavy, “...not just yet….” Yuuri listened to the shaking in Viktor’s voice, the sound tethering the line between hope and despair as, for the first time, Viktor wasn’t confident in his reply, didn’t know which way to lean.

The music and laughter that were filling the room started blending together into a strange silence, making Yuuri feel as if he was under water, drowning in his own feelings. He had tried so hard to not cross the line, to keep that small shred of distance between them because he knew people wouldn’t understand them, wouldn’t approve of them.

But they were sitting so close now, their legs almost touching under the table. Yuuri relaxed his hand, let it slide to his knee where it was so close to Viktor’s that Yuuri could almost feel the soft skin against his. The feeling made Yuuri think of two people huddling close to fit under the same umbrella, hands touching so neither of the two people would get caught by the rain. It felt like an old promise that Yuuri had been afraid to fulfill and had kept running away from. But now Yuuri didn’t feel like running away, unless it meant running into Viktor’s arms.

Yuuri took a deep breath and closed the distance between them, wrapping his fingers around Viktor’s hand under the table where no one could see them. Viktor had been about to say something else but his words were cut off by a sharp intake of breath the moment their hands touched. Yuuri still didn’t dare look at him and picked up his beer instead, taking a sip while holding on tighter to Viktor’s hand.

The small squeaking sound coming from his right almost made Yuuri spit out the beer. Yuuri had never seen Viktor lacking words but now all he could hear from him was the soft hiccup that, undoubtedly, had been caused by Yuuri taking Viktor’s breath away.

A small spread on Yuuri’s face when he felt Viktor’s hand tightening as well, a clear  _ yes _ to Yuuri’s silent proposal. Now all they had to do was get through the semester without anyone finding out.

**Author's Note:**

> You can also find me [on tumblr](https://chessala.tumblr.com/)


End file.
